Free weights provide weight resistance during strength training exercises. For example, a strength training device or system may include a bar having a grip in the center and weight loading areas on either side of the grip. A user may load one or more weight plates onto the weight loading areas to increase the weight of the bar. The user may load the weight plates onto the bar such that there is an equal weight distribution on either side of the grip. An equal weight distribution will minimize the torque placed on the bar and balance the bar during the weight training exercises. Lateral movement of the weight plates before and/or during the exercise may make the bar more difficult for a user to control during the exercise and may create additional risks to the user, individuals in the vicinity, or surrounding objects.
In a fitness center or gym, the space between exercise equipment may be limited. A poorly-controlled bar and/or weights may create a hazard to the user or other individuals in the gym. In the case of commercial gyms, the increased risk created by a poorly-controlled bar and/or weights may, in turn, increase liability for the gym.
Bar clamps are often used to restrict the lateral movement of weight plates on a bar. The bar clamps may be added to either end of the bar near or abutting the weight plates. The bar clamps may be, for example, a spring clamp that a user may expand to slide over the end of the bar, place adjacent the weight plates, and then release to allow the spring clamp to constrict onto the bar. Other clamps commonly used to restrict the lateral movement of weights on a bar include screw clamps. A user may slide a screw clamp over the end of the bar, place it next to the weights, and then tighten a screw in the clamp that secures the claim in place on the bar. Both screw and spring bar clamps are separate components from the bar and from the weight plates that must be completely removed from and replaced on the bar to remove or change weight plates. These bar clamps are also stored separately between usages of the bar and weight plates. However, the complete removal of the bar clamps from the bar each time a user removes or changes the weight plates increases the chance that the bar clamps may be lost or broken. Additionally, to save costs and reduce clutter, gyms typically have a limited number of bar clamps available for use. Given the limited number of bar clamps, users often do not take the time to locate them if they are not readily available at the station at which the user is loading his or her weights. Additionally, bar clamps and spring clamps can become stiff, thereby making them difficult for users to properly place and secure on the bar. Further, users who are performing sets of exercises successively with minimum rest time between sets, commonly referred to as performing “super sets,” often do not use bar or spring clamps because they increase the time required to change the weights in between sets. In view of these and other limitations of conventional screw and spring clamps, a need exists for an improved device and system for limiting the lateral movement of weights on a bar.